Pandemonium

“Trouble on the bedbug front,” Bernie says. “Have we discussed bedbugs before? Can’t remember.” He looks at me. Is he wondering whether I remember? The answer is no, but if Bernie can’t remember something then no one can, meaning … meaning it didn’t happen at all? Wow! I never have thoughts like that.

“Seems to be an epidemic of bedbugs in New York especially.” Bedbugs? A kind of bug? Some humans have a real thing about bugs, spraying poisons and waving at the air. I’ve got nothing against bugs. Some are quite tasty. I think there’s something about that in The Dog Who Knew Too Much.

“Pest control companies are using dogs to sniff out the bedbugs.” Well, of course! “But now some customers are complaining that some of the dogs are indicating bedbugs where there are no bedbugs.” Yeah? Check again, New York buddies. “A University of Florida study showed that dogs have a 95% to 98% success rate when it comes to sniffing out bedbugs.” Good or bad? They sound like big numbers, but you tell me.

“Here’s a woman in Brooklyn says there’s a whole bedbug pandemonium going on.” Pandemonium. There’s a new one. I kind of like it. In fact, it may be one of those words that gets me going, like treat, for example.

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79 Responses to “Pandemonium”

YSAS had bedbugs in an apartment once. This was two or three years ago. The whole block was infected. He said there would be sofas, wooden chairs, beds out of the sidewalk with warning signs "BED BUGS!"

For once, no one would pick them up (usually gone with in minutes) and the garbage people took them away.

Bedbugs!… Rockie and his hillbilly gang are being run ragged…sniff!sniff!…The minute one apartment is sniffed and cleaned three others in the same vicinity become infected….snort!… Business is booming!….Wooooo!….Those squirrels are raking in the big bucks for me!… wheeze!

I am a dog who is hard at work today, doing what I do the best – comforting. My Girl got food poisoning at lunch yesterday and was up all night. She's sleeping now and Mom put me in charge. I'm taking very good care of her. If my Girl isn't better in a couple of hours, the doctor will be called.

Re Australia and time zones, it's a bit complicated. First of all, the continent of Australia spans three time zones. Liz is in Canberra, which is in the eastern most part of Australia, and that is probably where the bulk of Australia's population lives (including in Sydney and Melbourne). The nominal time difference between the U.S. (East Coast) and Canberra should be 15 hours. However, because of daylight savings time and the different seasons in the southern hemisphere (they are on day-light savings time when we are not and visa-versa), when we are on daylight sayings time and they are not, the time difference is 14 hours, and when they are on daylight savings time and we are not, the time difference is 16 hours. And of course, if the overlap isn't perfect, there could short time periods when we are both on or both off, then I think it would be fifteen hours. (I don't know how daylight savings time down under aligns with daylight savings time here in the U.S., so not sure if that is theoretical or real.) And of course, once you make adjustments for Central Time (like Staff), Mountain time (like Rio) or Pacific Time (like Wolfie and Mollie ABP), the differences are bigger — it's all tied into the international date line thing, but don't get me started on that beause it is way too confusing. In fact thinking about this one caused my dad to wonder what time it is in outer space — that's a real toughie. My mom told him just to go back to sleep when it happened. Wookie

We hope that storm doesn't come to us or at least takes its time. 65 degrees for the next couple of days. I'll be left alone tomorrow so you won't hear much from me. Mom will be doing the Safety Patrol chairlift evacuation in the morning.

Here's how it goes: everyone goes up in the chair and then they stop it. Ski Patrol throws a line over the cable that a chair is on. A big wide belt is attached to the end of the line and the person on the chair puts the belt around his chest and under his arms. The guys on the ground pull it tight and then the person pushes off the chair and dangles in mid-air while being lowered to the ground. That person then becomes one of the crew bringing the next person down.

Do bed bugs bite dogs? Let's say a dog with hair on them like me and Chet sleep on a bed that has bed bugs. Yikes!!! Just in case, I have told mom no motel or hotel rooms…just our tent. Bed bugs have found their way to NM. They are adapting because they are suppose to like a more humid climate. Yikes!!!

Rio – wow! That clip was totally awesome. I must have missed the SNL thing with Pacino but he certainly nailed him in the clip. How do you think he would do with pug impersonations though … snort, grunt? Wookie

Rio – I'm cracking up at that. What a hoot that guy is. Mom is so in love with him. (Tim Lincecum move over.)

Melanie and MagPie! – Yes, Mom is a dropee. Everyone is, and then they become part of the team that rescues. Everyone has to know how to do it from top (literally) to bottom. The person holding the rope has another person backing him up.

Wookie!… LizF is exactly 16 hours ahead of me here in Mountain Time….snort!…Are you saying that this is not always the case depending on whether we are in daylight savings time and she is not …ummm….Or vice versa when we are both in daylight savings time or when neither of us are? ….grunt!

Outerspace!…. I thought time only existed if gravity is present….snort!…Is this totally off base?…snuffle.

We think that cat could have attacked the seagull and won the battle if it has chosen to do so. Mom saw a cat attack a roadrunner…those two birds are about the same size. The cat was winning until mom stepped in and stopped it.

Bed bugs have made their way to Alaska. They have been found at an elementary school. North To Alaska, Rockie!

MagPie! Sam's girl went to an Indian buffet with a friend for lunch. We have done this many times before and like their food. The friend is fine. Of course, at a buffet, you never know which food did it.

Hey y'all! Mom had a daylong staff education day at the library yesterday, then did some shopping for my boy's birthday on the way home, so she didn't let me on the computer until now. She got some bad news about her dad this morning — he has to have heart surgery. Mom's waiting to hear when because she may fly out to Washington to be there for the surgery. He already had to have surgery on his neck earlier this year to remove some bits of bone, and then a few weeks later he had to have another operation for some urinary tract issues. But the doctor says it's good they caught the heart thing when they did, because they don't discover this problem in most people until after they've had a heart attack. So everyone please think good thoughts for my grandpa!

Rio: Yes, we are watching "The Next Iron Chef." We also watch "Hell's Kitchen" and "Top Chef Desserts," although we've missed the last couple TCD shows. Mom also likes to watch the cake "Challenge" shows on the Food Network, because she's an amateur cake decorator — usually baby showers and birthdays, although she's doing a wedding cake for a friend's daughter's wedding next fall.

Bee: I hope you get lots and lots of rest! My dad had that walking pneumonia stuff back when he was in the Army. He was out in the field doing a training exercise, and the medics wanted to send him home, but he refused. So he spent the next few days out in the freezing rain and got even sicker! Mom was pretty mad at him when he got home and he told her what had happened! He was sick as a dog — so to speak! — for quite a while! Those Army guys just have to be so macho!!!

Rio. I'm mainly aware of the Australia time thing because we have a very close friend who lives in Sydney (Uncle Alan) and I know that it's 14 hours difference some parts of the year and 16 hours difference other parts of the year when we try to call one another. He hasn't been able to come to the States for awhile, but we do stay in regular contact and I even sent him copies of the first two Chet & Bernie mysteries (books can sometimes be harder to get and generally a lot more expensive in Australia than here).

As to gravity, you know what they say about gravity: Gravity –not only a good idea, it's the LAW.

Interesting thought though about time and gravity being linked; I'd never thought of it that way. Something definitely to ponder.

Gravity!… It has been scientifically proven that in areas of higher gravity the flow of time slows down in relation to an observer in a lighter gravity field. …snort!….A black hole is an extreme example of this – time stops at the event horizon…..grunt!…. Just ask Uncle Rio!…sniff!

Rio: It's actually called "Top Chefs: Just Desserts," and it's what the name implies — the chefs only make desserts, which is a switch from the usual chefs, who tend to bomb whenever they have to make a dessert. We were excited to see it at first because it's a great premise, but there are so many drama queens on the show that it became more about the personalities and less about the food. So we watch it when we can, but if we miss it we're not devastated!

The one we're really looking forward to is "Top Chef: All Stars" As the website says: "They’re back and they’re ready for redemption –- Bravo's Top Chef congregates a dream team of 18 past cheftestants who nearly won the title to return to see if they have what it takes." It starts Dec. 1, and the "cheftestants" include Elia, Tre, Marcel, Richard, Tiffani, Spike, Fabio, Stephen (the sommelier) and Angelo. It could be good!

All this chef talk made us think of something Barb whipped up a couple of weeks ago. She was making a dish that called for "Emeril's Original Essence". She didn't have any, and of course, it is not available in our little grocery store. It's a dry rub, and once you make it, it will keep in your spice cabinet for months. Also much cheaper to make than to buy. Has anyone used it, or would anyone like the recipe?

Dr Queen Bee – please get lots of rest and take good care of yourself!

Melanie – I'm glad your knee is fixable! Mom broke her knee white water rafting down the Grand Canyon and has had lots of operations, so we know all about knees. The aftermath is painful but then hopefully you will be up and at em!

Sam – I hope your girl is feeling better soon. I know that you will take good care of her!

Lexi – Welcome back! You always make me laugh!

All this talk about time is making my head spin. We dogs like to keep things simple: When is the family finally going to come home because I am lonely, and when is the next meal, slim jim, or salmon treat coming my way. Those are the important times for me, and none of these happen nearly often enough!

Being a dog who Blurrrrrrrrssssssssss, I have an extra time componet to contend with. Being modest, I don't like to mention it, but not only am i adept in blurring in distance, but I can also transport myself back and forth in time. I don't have it mastered, and I have had some real embarrassing moments, but it is great fun! I especially enjoyed meeting Willie Shakespeare when he was a lad, but he thought I was a mutt, so it didn't turn out so well.

My boys have been awol since Tuesday and then they called Mom yesterday at work (after she went home) and demanded that she bring them pizza. Uh? What's up with that!

Me and Mom and Dad are doing great. The sad part is what the boys are doing to themselves….they are hungry and dirty and haven't changed clothes since Tuesday. I don't understand how anybody would chose to live that way. Most likely they will be suspended from school next week. They are closing so many door for themselves, and yet they have a family who loves them dearly and wants nothing more than to help them succeed. They don't call it tough love for nothing. These are lessons they need to learn for themselves, and we have to let them without coming to their rescue.

Wölife: Just noticed the post. Sometimes I think things come up later even though they were posted before. Probably has something to do with Riö and Wöökie's time thing.

Touch love ain't easy. Your mom or dad don't happen to have a video camera or anything. Maybe if they took a film of them now, when they are in a better space, the boys could be shown the video and told "that is what you are like, when you do what you were doing."

Have no idea if it would work, just throwing things out there.

Speaking of which, the Pack is throwing Newfie drool and hugs and kisses to you all.

Dawson wants me to say 'Hello' for her. She is having a conniption fit. She claims Dad's computer freezes up every time she gets on it. She says she has a lot to say but can't and it is driving her crazy. (Short drive says Alice)

We might have to take her out to Computer World and see if she can buy a little netbook when we get there next week. Of course then there will be 4 more computers in the house. Heh. So she might not need to.

Poor Dawson, we feel for her. She has been offline for a long time now and really misses the blog.

Wolfie: My boy told Mom tonight that he feels better about himself right now than he has in the past 10 years — he feels like he has a future and he's doing something worthwhile. Just a few years ago Mom and Dad didn't know where he was, and when they finally did find him he was about to be evicted from his apartment. The only money he was making came from being a test subject for scientific experiments, and the only thing in his cupboards were a few packets of ramen noodles. From the depths of despair to a bright future. I'm not saying it happened overnight — there were still many crisises to deal with — but hang in there. Every kid is different, but I bet deep down inside your boys, there are good kids just fighting to get out. My best wishes to all of you!

Staff!… Please tell Dawson that I personally miss her very much!…snort!…She was just hitting her comedic stride when she had to travel, choose to be a cheapskate, and now is living in a house with “The Legacy System”…heh!… Poor Dawson! I can just picture her having a conniption fit…sniff!….Her head on the desk, her little tiny fist pounding down, down, down, every time the computer freezes…snorkel!

Wolfie!… I get tough-love every day and look at me…snort!… I live on the straight and narrow by pure and utter force – the only real road to Dog Heaven…heh!… I can only empathize with what you are going through as an observer….grunt!… I feel bad about that because I want to make sure everyone I know and adore is happy …sniffle.

Craft!…. Her crafty stuff came in the mail tonight…heh!… Now we will see if she even does anything with this new skill which she has not learned yet…snort!… Luckily it is the weekend and she can spend a little time with it after all the other stuff we have to do, maybe…grunt!

Stover!…Do you mean in the future or right now?…snort!… I only know she has not opened the box yet….sniff!…She says she’s tired and only wants to take it easy right now…heh!…So we are on the couch, her and I, watching an independent Russell Crowe movie that no one has ever heard of… heh! …Imagine him in a movie called, Tenderness if you can… grunt!

We miss Dawson too. And we can't wait to hear all the stories of the 3 sisters brewing up Thanksgiving dinners!

Mom is watching Dr Phil right now. The guests are a married man and wife and the husband is cheating on the wife because the wife is a little fluffy. I think she needs to go on a diet and lose about 200 lbs of ugly fat. (The conceiting, smug, self serving husband.)

Fat!… Well speaking as a trim slim(ish) almost target weight Pug… snort!…If someone is over-weight you should still love them and support them in their journey of weight loss…heh!… My friend, She KICKED MY ASS all summer long folks… grunt!…But now I know it was for my own good …dammit!…I am all muscle now…sweet!

Sob!…As you might know, if you do read all the words on the blog…sniff!…I have been watching an “Indie” film (we love Indie films!)… grunt!…with the dreaded and yet admired Russell Crowe…sneeze!… NOT up to Spacey standards in his acting and grunting abilities, but in this film he was Okay. The film was titled Tenderness…snort!…When ever we watch an Indie film we leave our suburban lives at the doorstep and prepare to look at other lives entirely foreign to what we experience every day…snort! … It helped a lot during this film. For some reason the main character reminded us of Clarkson (only in looks) so this made it even more disturbing. Unlike an accident, we could not take our eyes off of it….wheeze!… The ending which was sort of predictable was still surprising if that makes sense!…grunt!….It was the final Narrative (Indie films have narrative to explain the whole thing sometimes) that drilled into both of our souls tonight…grump!…Here it is word for word.

“Pleasure helps you forget, but pain forces you to hope. You tell yourself this can’t last. Today could be different. Today, something just might change." …grunt! …Doesn't seem like much, but to us it struck a chord of C or maybe G…gruff!

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